Pokemon: The Majra Islands
by Skylimit
Summary: On the Majra Islands, a conspiracy is brewing. Two boys with the dreams of being the greatest will now find themselves struggling to stay alive as they get caught in the middle. Chapter 3 is up!
1. Welcome to the Majra Islands

Hello everyone! A while ago I put up a fic of the same name as this one and made a right mess of it. I didn't plan anything, my characters were becoming bland and everything was getting a bit too out of control. So! I'm keeping the Majra Islands idea but other than that it's a fresh start. In this way I hope that the end result of this is much better than my previous attempt.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, but I do own the new characters and continents etc. in this story.

Not too far from the Hoenn Region are the Majra Islands. The Majra Islands consist of twelve major islands, and many smaller ones. These islands vary, from small forest islands to islands so hot that the inhabitants must live underground. There are islands that are split up into several segments due to extreme wet seasons, and islands covered in mountains.

The Majra Islands are split up into smaller groups of islands: The Jostan Islands, Nuvero Islands, Ava Islands and the Firodan Islands. People can travel to different islands within the groups via the vast Ferry Service the islands have. Rates are cheap to dissuade people from attempting to travel between islands using their own methods. For those wishing to travel to a different group of islands, there are well-maintained aeroplanes, also with cheap rates. Both of these travelling methods are found at the Main Stations, located on every major island in the Majra Islands. It's a system that works well for tourists, but it is an invaluable tool for Pokemon Trainers.

Pokemon Trainers on the Majra Islands apply for a Trainer's Licence that allows free transport between the islands. Trainers can apply for their licence at the age of fourteen after passing several tests. They then travel around the Majra Islands collecting the eight gym badges, but this is where the Majra Pokemon League is different from the others. After collecting the eight gym badges, trainers receive a Challenge Pass, allowing them to travel to Challenge Island. The Island contains a series of challenges for trainers, including mazes, navigation through mountains and even a watered down version of the Pokemon League. Once trainers have completed Challenge Island, they are permitted to enter the League.

There are numerous other systems at trainers' disposal. The Majra Rangers help any Trainers or Pokemon in need, and there are rest lodges exclusively for trainers in strategic locations around the islands.

Trainers should be warned that the islands are far from safe. Many underground gangs and organisations plague various islands, meaning that it is always a risk to travel around the islands. Some of the groups only break the law for money or infamy, while others have hidden intent. These groups have been a problem for many years, but thanks to improved Police and security measures, crimes are kept to a minimum.

In terms of Pokemon, most of the 386 different species of Pokemon can be found on the Majra Islands. However, several new Pokemon have been recently discovered on the smaller islands, and have already been added to the PIA's vast library of knowledge.

Trainers travelling around the Majra Islands are given a PIA (Pokemon and Information Assisstant). The PIA serves as a Pokedex, but also gives information on various topics concerned with the Majra Islands, be it information on an island or an underground group, the PIA is a valuable tool.

This story begins in Dustwood Town, where two trainers are about to begin their journey...


	2. The Application

"Name: Lyle Crawford. Gender: Male. Age..."

"Y'know, you don't need to read it out." Lyle grinned at his friend.

"Then I can't distract you and make you put in stupid answers! C'mon, this application form is stupid anyway, you might as well TRY and make it interesting!" The boy sighed.

"Okay, let me catch up. Name: Andrew Foster. Gender: Male. Age: 17. Likes...this sounds like it's a dating form or something." Lyle sniggered and nodded.

"I know! I mean, look down the page: quirks, good habits, bad habits, general appearence...they can't NEED that for a bloody registration form!" Andrew shrugged.

"Where the Pokemon Board's concerned, who knows. C'mon, let's just keep going." Lyle flopped down onto the floor. The two boys were contained within a small room with darkened wooden walls and floors. The place looked fairly modern, with two bubble chairs and an oddly shaped bed being the only pieces of furniture in the room. The rest of the floor was occupied by various sheets of paper and magazines, with the occasional piece of clothing. Lyle picked up some trousers and put them under his head to create a cushion.

"You just finish yours, Andrew. I feel too lazy just now." Andrew rolled his eyes and continued.

"Okay. Likes...um, what do I like?"

"Pizza?" Lyle didn't sound as though he'd put too much thought into that answer, but Andrew scribbled it down.

"Anything else?"

"Umm...Pokemon?"

"Naw, that's too obvious. Umm...going new places...and one more for luck...sleep!" Lyle sat up looking incredulous.

"Sleep? Sleep is one of your favourite things?" Andrew nodded.

"Means I don't have to see your ugly mug. Unless it's a nightmare." Lyle shrugged and lay back down on the floor, gazing up at the ceiling. "Right. Dislikes...any su-"

"Work." Lyle replied almost instantly.

"That was quick." Andrew noted as he wrote down the answer.

"It's that obvious. You didn't even want to do this questionaire, said you wanted to do it for next year." Andrew put down his pencil and lay back in his bubble chair.

"Alright then, smart ass you fill out some more of yours!" Lyle sluggishly sat up again and reached for his application form.

"Bloody Pokemon Board perverts...likes being with friends and hiking. Seeking adventurous female who is also being abused by the Pokemon Board..." Andrew laughed at this while Lyle scribbled something out.

"You didn't actually put that, did you?" He asked.

"Maaaybe." Andrew burst out laughing again and almost fell off his bubble chair. "Right then, dislikes...let's be a rebel and say rules and work."

"You don't like those anyway." Andrew pointed out as he started rocking the bubble chair from side to side casually. He picked up his application form and started reading it. When he reached the bottom he groaned. "Aww great. It says you only have to do the ones with stars on them! That means..." He scanned the page. "Oh. We did have to do those. Hey...all of them are starred! Oh wait, except for appearence. Why do they need all this anyway?" Lyle scanned his application form.

"Oooh, it's for Pokemon compatibility! That makes sense, but it's still weird. Alright I'll make this quick. Quirks: Eccentric and weird humour."

"Got that right."

"Good habits: Dedicated." Andrew snorted. "Okay, dedicated to important things. Bad Habits: Not dedicated to anything else. Aaand done!" Lyle folded up his application form and put it in a plain envelope with an adress stamped on it. "You finish up yours." Andrew picked up his pencil and started scribbling frantically, muttering as he wrote.

"Quirks, quirks...ah I'll just copy yours."

"Hey!"

"They're the same anyway...good habits: tidy...bad habits: lazy. Done! Let's go post these!"

Dustwood Town is located to the south east of Toro Island. It's a small town with very little greenery and not a lot going for it. The only reason it exists at all is because it takes too long to get from Toro Station to Cendal City, the main city on the island. As a result of being so far afield, it was three weeks before the two boys received anything from the Pokemon Board.

Lyle gaped at the package he was holding in his stubby-fingered hands. His blue eyes shone with anticipation as he read the official looking writing, having to shake his shoulder length hair out of the way as he leaned in closer to the box. He jolted as someone pounded at his door. Grinning, he rushed towards it and threw it open, revealing a very exhausted Andrew. His chestnut eyes also showed his anticipation, though his brown hair was all over the place, giving the impression that he had run very, very fast.

"You got it, right?" Andrew wheezed, holding his package in his arms. Lyle nodded and let him come in. They raced up to Lyle's room and scrabbled at the sellotape between them and their new pokemon.

"Damn...sellotape..." Lyle snarled as he was forced to use his teeth. Eventually the two got their packages open and were reading the official letters contained inside.

_Dear Trainer, _

_Thank you for applying with the Pokemon Board. You are now an official Majra Island Trainer and as such have access to Trainer discounts for transport between the islands, as well as a no fee charge in Pokemon Lodges across the island. _

_Also enclosed in this package is your PIA or Pokemon Information Assistant. This is an indispensible tool which allows you to view information about the island you are currently on, as well as tracking down other trainers, locating gyms and battle tents and much more. Your PIA also acts as your Trainer ID, so be sure to carry it around with you at all times. _

_Finally, there is also a Pokeball containing a Pokemon that matched in your compatibility application. _

_Good luck! _

_The Pokemon Board_

"AWESOME!" Lyle looked up from his letter to see Andrew gawping at a Chikorita. The Chikorita was smiling at Andrew and occasionaly said its name, looking even happier as it did so. He eventually snapped out of his stupor to see Lyle looking bemused at them. "Haven't you seen what Pokemon you have yet? Go on!" Lyle looked down at his pokeball and opened it up, out of which came...

"A Teddiursa." Andrew burst out laughing. Lyle looked at his new pokemon for a few seconds before sighing with disappointment. The Teddiursa saw this and its lip started quivering. In a matter of seconds it had started bawling, and Lyle had to repeatedly pet it before Teddiursa calmed down.

"What gender's yours?" Andrew asked. "I checked Florasu and she's a girl."

"Florasu? You named your Chikorita Florasu?" Andrew nodded. Lyle rolled on the floor laughing, and after looking at Lyle for a few seconds, Teddiursa joined in. Andrew looked indignant.

"Alright then! You come up with something better for Teddiursa!" Lyle thought for a few seconds.

"Crescent!" Andrew sweatdropped.

"Yeah. That's original."

"What? It's a better name than Florasu!"

"Whatever. I'm going to start getting ready for when we leave tomorrow."

-

The day was spent packing and repacking in preparation for leaving the next day. Andrew spent most of his time staring at Florasu, while Lyle had to continually pet the attention-seeking Crescent, as she (Lyle had found out Crescent was a girl) had cried whenever Lyle had taken his eyes off her for a few seconds. When the next day finally came, it brought with it thick fog that enveloped the town. The two boys had said goodbye to their families and were now making their way along Route 7. Andrew and Lyle were struggling to see a few metres in front of them, though the fog was showing signs of dispersing.

"Man!" Lyle groaned. "I thought we'd leave to a sunny morning or something! Not fog!"

"Be grateful it's not raining," Andrew replied, looking through the pages of his PIA and reading about Cendal City. "It says that Cendal is the main city of Toro Island. From there we can get to all the different parts of the island...and if we want to get the first badge we should go to Nitelite City." Lyle gave a small laugh. "What?"

"Nitelite City...who comes up with these names?" Andrew made to answer, then shrugged and the two continued walking along Route 7.


	3. First Battle and Mystery

"I'm not used to this much excercise!" Lyle complained. Andrew was also tired, but was determined not to show it. The two had been walking for a good few hours, and finally they were able to see their surroundings as the fog had eventually cleared. On either side of the path there was a lot of short grass with the occasional flower protruding from the green blades. To Lyle and Andrew this had been a welcome change from Dustwood, and had their eyes fixed on the sides of the road as they walked. Eventually they had become accustomed to this and focused on getting to Cendal, which they could see a tiny bit of in the horizon. The sun had already begun its descent, basking the surroundings in an orange glow. This was lost on Lyle as he stretched and sat down at the side of the path. Andrew stopped beside him but didn't sit down.

"Come on, Lyle. If we keep walking we can make it to Cendal before it gets too dark and find somewhere to stay." Lyle lay down on the grass and shut his eyes.

"We can still make it if I have a bit of a snooze. You need to relax." Andrew said nothing for a few moments, simply letting the gentle breeze gently brush past him. Then he grabbed one of Lyle's arms and hauled him up to his feet. "Okay, break over. Let's go." Lyle muttered darkly, but slid his feet along the path, bringing them closer to Cendal City.

-

Dark clouds loomed overhead as they entered Cendal. The industrial grey buildings were not what Lyle and Andrew had been expecting of the main city on Toro as they started looking for a place to stay.

"God, this place is ominous," Andrew noted as they walked. Lyle nodded in response at looked up at the blackened clouds.

"Is there a Pokemon Lodge here?" Andrew shook his head.

"We'll have to stay in a hotel or something." Lyle pulled a face and started looking from side to side in the hopes of finding somewhere to stay. The two had to keep moving in and out of people packed closely together, often talking in whispers.

"What's going on?" Andrew muttered as they dodged yet another group.

"You're not from around here, are you?" The two boys turned to see a man leaning against one of the buildings. He was dressed in a brown trenchcoat and wore a hat that obscured his face, which immediately put Andrew and Lyle on their guard.

"And who are you exactly?" Lyle ventured to ask. The man grunted.

"My name's not being distributed right now. So, you guys aren't from around here, are you?" Lyle bristled.

"What's this, a one sided conversation? You want answers from us, you'd better give us some yourself!" The man didn't seem bothered.

"Here's how the conversation was going to work. I ask you where you come from. You answer. Then I tell you why everyone's in a panic and moving in groups. Then maybe you ask some more about me but I don't answer and we leave it at that. I've changed my mind about that and I'm going to skip the pleasantaries." The man stood up, walked over to Lyle and punched him hard on the face. Lyle held a hand up to his left cheek where the fist had connected and readied himself to fight back. Before he could, Andrew stood between them.

"You idiots! If you want to settle something, then do it with your Pokemon!" The man's expression did not change, though Lyle's eyes lit up.

"Alright then," the man sighed. "One on one. No time limit. Go Murkrow!" The man flung out a pokeball, out of which emerged a small black bird, the feathers on its head resembling a crown.

"Go! Crescent!" Lyle brought out his Teddiursa, who blinked cutely and looked confused. "What are you doing? Fight it! Use an attack!"

"Teddi?" Crescent looked down at her honey soaked paws and stuck one in its mouth. Lyle snarled and brought out his PIA.

"C'mon...aha! Okay! Covet...scratch...fake tears...lick...alright! Crescent! Attack with scratch!" Crescent rushed up to Murkrow, still sucking on one of her paws. With her free paw she attempted to swipe at the dark bird but Murkrow simply raised itself slightly higher into the air, causing Crescent to fall to the ground, tears welling up in her eyes but no wailing emitting from her mouth as she was _still_ sucking her paw. "Crescent! Get that paw out of your mouth!" Crescent did so and started bawling at the top of her voice. As Lyle went to comfort her, Andrew noticed that the man had gone.

-

"What d'you thinks going on?" Lyle looked over at Andrew. The two had found a dingy hotel that didn't cost too much, and after beating the cockroaches away had settled down to go to sleep.

"Absolutely no idea. Maybe we should ask the guy downstairs or something tomorrow."

"Everyone looked scared. Whatever it is they're not taking it lightly." Andrew waited for an answer but when none came he assumed Lyle had gone to sleep. Andrew attempted to do the same, but his mind was too full of thoughts to concentrate. He walked over to the window and looked down into the street, where to his shock he saw the man from before. The man didn't appear to see him; he simply leaned against a wall and watched the dwindling crowd move by. Curiousity overcame his fear, and before Andrew knew what he was doing, he had gotten dressed and walked outside. He approached the man.

"Sorry about before," Andrew muttered a little unsure of himself. The man inclined his head.

"So do you want to know?" Andrew nodded. "Where do you come from?"

"Dustwood."

"That explains it. The people here are all worked up because there have been attacks in the city. No-one knows who's causing them or why. We only know that people who are alone get attacked and don't return. Good news is there aren't any reports of it happening anywhere else on the Majra Islands, so a lot of people are moving. I'll be joining them tomorrow."

"I thought earlier you said you weren't going to tell us anything about yourself."

"I said if you asked I wouldn't tell you. Anything else?"

"I look forward to battling you in the future." The man smirked and walked off.

-

"You did WHAT??" Andrew had told Lyle what had happened that night when he woke up, and he wasn't happy.

"Hey, calm yourself. I'm still here in one piece and now we know why people are going around in groups." Lyle grumbled but didn't press the matter. The two had recently departed from Cendal and were now making their way along Route 1 which would eventually lead them to Bayen Town. The dark clouds from yesterday had followed them, and the two were running along the route as rain assaulted them from above.

"I HATE HOW LONG THESE ROUTES ARE!" Andrew yelled at Lyle to make himself heard over the sound of the rain.

"SAME HERE!" Lyle replied. "LET'S HOPE THERE'S SHELTER SOMEWHERE...AHA! A ROUTE LODGE!" People had complained about the distance between towns and cities, and in response to this Route Lodges had been set up. They only had a few beds, but they also had a canteen - with a small discount for trainers - and a large lounge. Lyle and Andrew picked up speed and breathed a sigh of relief as they entered the warm comfort of the wooden lodge. As Lyle shook himself to get rid of excess water, Andrew looked around to see who else was here. There were two hikers deep in discussion, and near the other end of the lounge was a girl about their age tossing a pokeball up into the air and catching it. She spotted the two boys and walked up to them.

"Hi!" She beamed at Lyle. "I haven't seen you before. I'm Jenna!" Lyle gawped at Jenna, clearly at a loss for words at the sight of a female.

"I'm Andrew," Andrew said, trying to break the silence. Jenna shot daggers at him.

"I didn't ask for YOUR name!" She growled. Andrew took a step back. Jenna returned her attention to Lyle. "Do you want to get something to eat?" Lyle nodded, his mouth still open. Jenna linked their arms and steered them towards the canteen. Andrew walked after them and joined them in the queue. Andrew randomly selected some food that he liked, still slightly out of it after Jenna's cold response to him. He saw them eating at a table and walked over to them.

"Listen, Jenna. About before..." Jenna gave him a cold look.

"You're interrupting a special moment. So, Albert..."

"My name's Andrew."

"I don't care. Just leave." Andrew clenched his fists.

"Now you listen here. I haven't done anything wrong and yet in the attempts I've tried to be nice you've made it seem like I have."

"That's nice. Are you done?" Andrew drew himself up to his full height.

"THAT'S IT!" He roared. "LET'S SETTLE THIS!" Jenna sighed and shook her head.

"Fine. If I win, you leave me and Lyle alone."

"What?? What kind of a..."

"It's not up for debate."

"FINE! But if I win..."

"You wont. Now, let's go outside and settle this."


End file.
